#tghh!Cassidy

[daandyli0n]

(warnings for eye contact and blood)

pov: World's Most Paranoid Five Year Old (< witnessed his dad kill someone)

@that-darn-clown @hello-there-world and @docterzerocare here's the boy!! Cassidy!! :D

[daandyli0n]

yeah!!

like. Gabi's an interesting kid. she's technically transfem, but everyone thinks she's just seeing what being a girl's like. her parents don't 100% get it and just think it's a phase of sorts (they're not really transphobic, considering they know Mike Exists and have no problem calling him a guy. they just don't know if this is just a thing Gabi's trying out or if it's her Being A Trans Girl), but they're doing their best.

she's got horrific sensory issues. bright lights suck (unless it's sunlight), anything that isn't as soft as a blanket is the worst texture of clothes to exist, Sounds Are Horrible (which many people think is ironic, considering she talks very loud and very fast, but. y'know. struggles with volume and stuff), and she can literally TASTE the difference between soda from different places (and she thinks the orange soda from Freddy's SUCKS compared to the kind from the store). like to give you an idea.

she'll talk a mile a minute about things that don't seem connected at all (so correction. she's AuDHD), she'll hide under the tables at Freddy's if the lights in the room are just a shade too bright, or even to avoid other people (sound slightly familiar to a certain animatronic?), she'll ask Jeremy to go to the store to get her soda that she'll actually drink.

she <3

"fun" fact: those sensory issues i mentioned? that's how William managed to lure her (and technically Isaac...but that was because Isaac Didn't Trust That Shit and didn't want his baby sister to go alone). told her that there was a birthday party in the back just for her, away from all the noise and lights and other people.

entirely unrelated, but Gabi deserves to murder-

if you'd like a fun fact about the au (which is. steadily becoming the Rewrite. welp), here ya go:

so. i've mentioned before that Cassidy is semiverbal (doesn't talk often, sometimes can't talk but not for Anxiety Reasons (which would likely make it selective mutism, which isn't something he deals with), can't say A Lot of things, to describe what it's like for him). he hangs out with Bea, Junior, and Gabi at Daycare (or Freddy's, if they happen to be there), so they all know each other, right?

so. Gabi, for several weeks, never heard him talk. she straight up thought he couldn't talk (though she didn't know the term, she basically thought he was mute).

so one day she asks everyone (mostly Bea and Junior because again. thought Cassidy couldn't talk) what their favorite candy was, and while Bea and Junior both start bickering over whether chocolate or skittles were the best candy, Cassidy suddenly (and quietly) just said "Caramel's my favorite 😊"

everyone goes quiet, and after a few seconds, Gabi suddenly goes

"JESUS CHRISTO, HE CAN TALK?!"

which. then led to the other two going "Yeah? He doesn't talk a lot, but he says things sometimes" and then Gabi just got more confused. "HE'S TALKED TO YOU TWO BEFORE???" "...Wait, you legitimately haven't heard him talk? Like at all?"

and the whole time, Cass is just sitting there like "🙂" while playing with a plushie.

like, to be fair. Gabi was like four. she's autistic herself, but this was the first time she'd ever met someone who either didn't (or kinda couldn't) talk as much as she did. the other two before this just thought Cassidy was shy.

anyway, long story short, Gabi my beloved <3 this was how she found out that semi/nonverbal people existed. it. sure was a way for it to happen, i'll say that!

I love that she kinda just thought he was weird and went with it. And then was like WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOUVE ALL KNOWN THIS THE WHOLE TIME

[hello-there-world]

y'know. thought about tghh!Gregory again. and i really do think the best way to describe him is "a child born into tragedy."

like. to give a timeline:

his dad was a zombie when he gave birth to him, and the only real negative side effect of this happening was that it gave him the ability to see ghosts/various other entities.

his dad died when he was a year old. he doesn't even really remember his dad, and he'll never get to know him

to go with this...technically Greg has met his dad. in his sleep. but he doesn't know that. (long story short, Michael is Old Man Consequences. and also technically Death Itself but that's another discussion entirely)

he was sent to live with his aunt (or as he calls her, his Tía) and her wife because his still-living father is still trying to cope with grief and put his life back together.

he has to live with the knowledge that there's so many family members he'll never get to meet. he sees pictures of aunts and uncles, all young children, around his age or slightly older. but he never sees pictures of them as adults. he doesn't like to think about it too hard.

he keeps seeing pictures of this boy who looks...so similar to him, it's almost like looking in a mirror. he even has the same stuffed bear the boy in the photo has. everyone says his name is Cassidy. that's Greg's middle name. was he named after this boy, to an extent? why does he always look so sad?

his dad was a zombie when he gave birth to him, and the only real negative side effect of this happening was that it gave him the ability to see ghosts/various other entities.

his dad died when he was a year old. he doesn't even really remember his dad, and he'll never get to know him

to go with this...technically Greg has met his dad. in his sleep. but he doesn't know that. (long story short, Michael is Old Man Consequences. and also technically Death Itself but that's another discussion entirely)

he was sent to live with his aunt (or as he calls her, his Tía) and her wife because his still-living father is still trying to cope with grief and put his life back together.

he has to live with the knowledge that there's so many family members he'll never get to meet. he sees pictures of aunts and uncles, all young children, around his age or slightly older. but he never sees pictures of them as adults. he doesn't like to think about it too hard.

he keeps seeing pictures of this boy who looks...so similar to him, it's almost like looking in a mirror. he even has the same stuffed bear the boy in the photo has. everyone says his name is Cassidy. that's Greg's middle name. was he named after this boy, to an extent? why does he always look so sad?

there are pictures of his dad, Tía, and Cassidy with a man. but his face is always cropped out. he's heard that's his grandfather. no one likes to talk about him, though.

when he was given his teddy bear - everyone calls it "Fredbear" - he met two odd ghosts. he calls one "Wrath," because they just seem so...angry all of the time. for reasons Gregory can't guess. the other one he just calls "Fredbear." they seem to be around his age and height, but they have a paper plate mask on, decorated to look a bit like his teddy bear. they seem to be dressed in a white sheet like a cloak from the neck down. a ghost. they look like they were dressed for Halloween or something. they never take the mask off for some reason. he also calls them "Fredbear" because they never really answer the question when he asks who they are. he also decides to ignore that the kid's costume seems slightly singed by fire.

and now a rabbit lady is trying to kidnap or kill him one!! he's just trying to Vibe what's her problem!! (he's also trying to ignore the glitchy rabbit thing following her. maybe if he pretends hard enough it's not there and it doesn't know who he is. or who his dad was.)

don't even MENTION to him that the glitchy rabbit thing mimicked his voice to try and kill two of his best friends. like!! again bestie what's your problem!!

like. a lot of people wonder why, 85% of the time, Gregory looks pissed off and unapproachable (as a six-year-old). i mean, one part of it is that he inherited having a Resting Bitch Face from Michael. but like. the other part of that is All Of This Shit.

can you even blame the kid for looking unhappy 90% of the time? he's gonna need So Much Therapy when he gets older.

(another fun tghh!Gregory fact for you: he really likes Sanrio characters. he could not give less of a fuck that people think it's "girly" or some shit. those are HIS emotional support silly kawaii animals!!

yes Liz is the person who got him interested in Sanrio. initially he wanted a Cinnamoroll-themed backpack to carry things around in, and it went from there. Liz raises Greg with a few rules in mind; one of those is "this kid has a rough life already; let him enjoy what he wants."

to go with this, Cassie is a Minecraft Kid (like Yours Truly), and she and Greg have a server they play on together. her skin is a coyote* with overalls and flowers, and Gregory's skin is basically a humanized Cinnamoroll that he somewhat based on himself)

(* this universe's Roxy/Modern Foxy equivalent is a coyote, because Cassie likes wolves And foxes, and Sammy wanted to do what his dad did with Charlie - make a robot for her - and decided that a coyote was a good halfway point between fox and wolf. Cassie loves them; his name is Cooper and he's a cowboy :] still has an eyepatch as a nod to Foxy)

Yay!!! Poor Gregory. Let him kill someone. Preferably the people trying to kill him. It would be funny and he'd probably feel better.

[daandyli0n]

(warnings: blood/gore, eye contact, child death/murder, alcoholism, underage drinking and smoking, vaguely implied emotional abuse/manipulation (on the second page), disturbing/creepy imagery)

"Losin' teeth in dreams can mean ya feel that ya don't have control in yer life...Mike, do ya wanna talk about it? Y'know I'm all ears-"

"It probably doesn't fuckin' mean anything, Charles. Besides, it's a dream, man. Just...drop it, 'kay?"

(aka Michael has trauma. and dreams. they escalate from Teeth Nightmares to "All My Friends Are Dead" REALLY fucking quickly)

different dreams Michael has and what they mean:

Losing Teeth: as mentioned by Charlie in the caption, losing teeth in a dream can symbolize feeling as though you don't have any control in your life.

Falling: similarly to losing teeth, it can symbolize a lack of control, or at least the feeling of it.

Dead Loved Ones Being Alive: this one can be. kinda obvious. Grieving. Mike's Grieving His Dead Friends.

The Nightmares: well...originally, Cassidy was the one having The Nightmares...but haunting someone can certainly Do Some Weird Shit (such as transferring nightmares to someone, intentionally or not). (also, the reason that The Nightmares are blurry is because i don't have designs for them just yet)

also, i wanted to sort of like...not directly show William, but wanting to show his Presence is there. that's what all the purple is for :]

also ignore any wonky anatomy. i've had a rough few days

anyway! THE LYRIC COMIC IS FINALLY DONE BOYS! WOO!

time for tags:

@that-darn-clown @hello-there-world @docterzerocare and @fazgoo-connoiseur-1987 ('cause you said you'd be interested in seeing it)

yes i worked on this while the power and internet were out. this along with the internet were why i was gone for a bit. also the power

edit: FUCK FORGOT THE SONG. it's "Kitchen Fork" by Jack Conte

[daandyli0n]

drew myself a lil tghh!Cassidy for my birthday :] look at him go!!

@that-darn-clown @hello-there-world and @docterzerocare if you wanna see the boy :]

[daandyli0n]

okay, so!!

(small heads up: i've got. some weird timeline shit going on with the These Gilded Haunted Halls au. so just a heads up there)

first, Cassidy:

full name is Cassidy David Afton. some people call him Dave and it confuses the shit out of him.

heterochromia! one blueish-silver eye (his dad's eye color), and the other a dark brown.

autistic and semiverbal. a lot of people think he's selectively mute though.

nonbinary but didn't get to figure it out 😔

the Fredbear plush had been a gift from Charlie and Andrew. it was also his favorite.

he had a pacifier up until he died.

loves plushies. fucking loves them.

knew all of the MCI kids in one way or another. his best friend, though, was Gabi (the Freddy spirit).

may or may not have witnessed his dad murder someone when he was a toddler, and that's what fucked him up. his dad was in the suit, too, so that's why he was scared of the animatronics in particular.

he honestly...didn't hate Michael, surprisingly enough. they had both been close before William decided to do some Killing, and his murders had fucked both of them up pretty bad (Michael lost two of his friends (Charlie and Andrew) in the span of like. a month, and to say he didn't have a healthy way of coping with it is an understatement (just ask Cassidy), and well...Cassidy literally witnessed one of the murders, and it traumatized the fuck out of him). if anything, Cassidy was more confused and upset about the fact Mike was being mean to him out of nowhere.

Cassidy had the Nightmares first. they were trauma nightmares, not anything caused by Fear Gas or something similar. they got transferred over to Mike after Cassidy died, though (not on purpose).

Andrew was the one talking through the Fredbear plush. they wanted to keep an eye on the kid.

survived the Bite! he lives!! well, for a few months, at least. we'll get there.

he was the Midnight Motorist Runaway. where was he going? to find Andrew's body, long story short.

so...i may or may not have come up with a Wild theory while trying to fall asleep at night, and then decided to make it canon to the Rewrite/au. so if you're curious what happened to this poor kid, long story short: Cassidy died in a carousel fire at Fallfest '83...that may or may not have been William's fault. and intentional.

he's more angry on behalf of the other spirits than himself, really.

he is "The One [William] Should Not Have Killed," but he's not the Vengeful Spirit.

he's the one who keeps dragging Mike back to Freddy's. mostly in a "Mike please come pick me up i'm scared" sort of way.

my beloved <3 he deserved so much better <3

now, onto Andrew:

technically speaking, his full name is David Miller Andrews.

the reason his friends call them Andrew/Andy is because of Mike. long story short, William will usually refer to employees (especially newer ones) by their last names, and when Mike was little, he sort of copied that by calling people he'd just met by their last names. this led to Mike calling him 'Andrews,' then 'Andrew,' and then 'Andy.' it just stuck.

demiboy, but isn't aware of that specific term; he/they.

he, Michael, Charlie, and Sammy were all in the same age range (12-13). Andy was the oldest, being about a year older than the others at 13.

died over a month after Charlie did (died on June 26th, 1981, while Charlie died on May 13th, 1981).

wasn't even an intended victim of William's; the two got into an argument and William knocked them out. the next thing they knew, Andrew was getting springlocked in Fredbear.

William dumped his body in a lake near the Afton House.

possessed the Fredbear plush to keep an eye on Cassidy (and Mike, to a lesser extent).

got really pissed off after Cassidy died. because Jesus Fucking Christ William.

he and Mike used to have a crush on each other, and while Andrew could tell Mike reciprocated their feelings, Mike didn't know Andy felt the same way. they were happy when Mike started dating Jeremy; he took it as a sign Mike could move on.

yes, he did get pissed off when William started using Dave Miller as an alias.

the Vengeful Spirit :]

that's all that's coming to mind right now!! anyway. my beloveds <3

would you like to hear a bit about my version of Cassidy (CC) and Andrew?

i'm thinkin about them and i want to Ramble

Please do I enjoy rambling

[daandyli0n]

the babies!!

some design notes for both!

Gregory:

meant to look like Cassidy, but with Mike's hair.

Michael and Jeremy's son.

he's a Sanrio fan, And I'm Not Elaborating.

he's got partial heterochromia.

he just kinda looks pissed all the time. he usually isn't. Usually.

Cassie:

meant to look like (young) Charlie.

Sammy got her a green watch. nothing weird about that. It Certainly Doesn't Look Like A Certain Bracelet What're You Talking About :)

Sammy's granddaughter, and Henry's great granddaughter.

other/applies to both:

i'm not sure how old Greg and Cassie are meant to be canonically, but in TGHH, they're both first graders.

they're both (purposefully) meant to look like their namesakes (well...more like middle namesakes, but you get the idea).

Gregory's unhappy due to Various Trauma (and Family Trauma) Reasons. such as his dad being dead since he was a year old-

their families are trying to protect them from. So Much Shit. all the murder and death.

tag time!

@that-darn-clown @hello-there-world @docterzerocare

[that-darn-clown]

so. found a new song that is. Literally Just tghh!Charlie. it's "suffering" by Amélie Farren. i'd listen to the song first before reading through all this :] i think you'd like it.

get ready for a song analysis:

(i'm going to be waiting for the end to discuss the chorus. so we're going to go through the main verses first)

"I've thrown aside my worries,

but the cares they bite me back."

Charlie Is Anxious. tries not to be, for the Kids' sake

"I'm taking twenty vitamins a day

for the iron I lack."

something something Charlie died from blood loss, something something "lacking iron"...

"I don't need food, I don't need sleep,

don't tell me that I'm wrong."

Charlie not needing bodily needs anymore due to not being dead, but still not taking care of himself.

"I don't know what I'm doing,

but can you please just play along?"

Charlie really doesn't know what to do (who would, in her position?), and confides in Andrew, just desperately asking him to go along with this. if the person protecting those kids doesn't know what she's doing...what will the kids think? they'll be just as scared as he is, and that's not a good thing for several reasons.

"My head is made of flowers,

my body made of steel,"

something something Charlie's gravesite, holding his original body, having flowers and Marion, her current body, being an animatronic with a metal endoskeleton...y'know, just a thought.

"'Cause I can't think,

can't hear, can't feel."

Anxiety and Trauma™ does shit to a person, especially a preteen that views herself as being personally responsible for like. six other dead kids, four of which are all under the age of ten 👍

"So out I jumped out with a parachute,

but the ground caught me off guard."

Charlie and the others got sent to the '87 location, and while Charlie was at least able to protect kids in some way due to Security Puppet Reasons, but now that part of Marionn's programming was removed. Charlie has no real way to protect those kids now without drawing Major unwanted attention. she's been caught off guard with this, Big Time.

"Karma for the rules I break,

the ones I disregard."

related to the point above, Charlie didn't want to get found out too quickly, and wanted to deal with the William Problem as discreetly as possible, and kinda tried to bend the rules a little to make it work without getting caught. it almost feels like this is Charlie's punishment for not doing enough (in her own eyes, at least).

"I can feel the tension rising.

What fate is worse than this?

Stuck between the ones I love

and the ones I miss."

Charlie desperately wants to go home, to be with his family again, but he feels the need to stick with the MCI and Cassidy to protect them. And things are getting more heated, with the spirits growing more restless.

"My head is made of shrubbery,

my body made of stone.

'Cause I can't for the life of me

reap what I have sown."

the first half goes with what i said earlier. the second half goes with Charlie feeling like she's incapable of protecting people post-'87 Massacre, despite that being the role he placed himself in; "'Cause I can't for the life of me reap what I have sown."

"I try to sink and never float,

'cause my head is underwater."

once again, Charlie is not good at taking care of herself. she feels "in over her head," and kinda just. has a lot of self-esteem issues. doesn't think he deserves, nor has the time, to improve his own mental health. y'know.

"I'm here by choice, by my own hand;

I'm a lamb sent into slaughter."

something something "I knew you wouldn't be content to disappear; not my daughter." something something "A wound first inflicted on me."

"I'm aware of my own body,

I can feel beneath my skin."

Charlie's Literally The Most Aware. no elaboration needed.

"I can wash away my insecurities,

but can't wash away my sin."

this...almost feels pretty self-explanatory. except he really didn't wash his insecurities away- (the "sin" is Charlie being unable to protect people. at least in her eyes)

"They say a picture's worth

a thousand words, but I disagree,

I can't imagine anything

'cause I can't see.

I won't break the ice

though what else is there to do?

'Cause suffering in silence is better

than suffering with you."

can't fully explain in words what most of the chorus means to me, because it depends on which verse immediately preceded it, but the very ending is Charlie referring to William.

anyway. there's all that!! hope you enjoyed :]

That song is so good wow. I love charlie so much he makes me insane lol. Love the head made of flowers body made of steel referring to flowers at the gravesite and marion.

[that-darn-clown]

so. apparently the Foxy Grid got solved (in case you haven't heard. Fnaf Theorists Are Losing It On Youtube), and it gave another (potential) name for CC that people think is probably the closest/most likely canon:

Dave/David. (Dave was the original name that they got, but there's the potential that it's short for David, hence both options being here)

now...i actually like the CC = Cassidy idea, but...i wanna add the lil nod to Dave in there, in two separate ways.

one is...probably the normal way most people who have different names for CC, but want to incorporate the name in there somehow, do it: make it his middle name.

so now, in TGHH, Cass's full name is Cassidy David Afton

the other way is by uh.

changing Andrew's name.

now, i have two ideas for what Andrew's full name is:

David "Dave" Cassidy Andrews

or

David "Dave" Miller Andrews

the reason i'm torn is because i can either do a cute matching thing with him and Cass, or i can make the fact that William used their first and middle name as an alias in the 90s, knowing damn well they were stuck in the pizzeria and would 100% know that he did that canon to the au/rewrite. both are good options (for different reasons), but i can't pick.

but either way, people* still call him Andrew/Andy.

(* Michael and co.)

the reason why his friends still call them Andrew is because Mike copied the thing William did where he'd refer to employees by their last names (primarily), and Mike would just call people he didn't really know too well by their last names. and with Andy it just. stuck.

anyway. that is all.

Cassidy has a canon middle name, And I Did A Funny Thing With Andrew.

Dave...

(I'm being silly but that's so rad!!)

[daandyli0n]

also, if you'd like some Cassidy headcanons, here they are:

Cassidy was a toddler (3, almost 4) in 1981. this is gonna be important to remember for later.

due to how much William worked, Cassidy would either be sent to a daycare (how he met three of the MCI kids), looked after by Claire (his mom :]), or by Mike. Mike, not wanting this to get in the way of hanging out with his friends, just. Dragged Cassidy With Him. the smartest idea? probably not, but hey!! Brotherly Bonding!!

the other MCI kids (Bea, Junior, Gabi, and Isaac) are where he got his other plushies

the Fredbear Plush was a gift from Charlie and Andrew. that's why it's his favorite :]

uh....Technically witnessed Andrew's murder. just walked in on William getting him springlocked (while William was in the suit). Will gaslit him and made him think that the Animatronic Itself killed Andy. that's "what Cassidy saw."

Andrew (partially) possessed the plushie to keep an eye on Cass.

the next two years were Absolute Hell for him.

in 1983, he was turning 6.

he doesn't hate Mike. not at all. he was a little wary for a few weeks after The Bite, but he never hated his brother.

so...how did he die? long story short, William got paranoid (didn't want to go to jail), realized Hey, Those Kids Possessed The Robots, Why Can't My Son? so to keep Cassidy from potentially saying anything, and to still keep him around somehow, William Murdered Him. THIS IS SURELY NOT GOING TO HAVE ANY CONSEQUENCES LATER

at first, Cassidy was confused, scared, and in denial. he didn't understand. why would his dad do that?

he partially haunted Michael. not out of hatred, but as a way to be able to go home.

so...1987 rolls around. William Strikes Again. and Cassidy witnesses it. THAT'S the point Cassidy realized that his dad was Fucking Horrible.

Cassidy is autistic. and semiverbal.

he carries a pacifier around using a long ribbon around his neck.

literally a good way to describe him would be "confused and anxious 90% of the time"

to reiterate:

MY! BELOVED!

(^ a phone doodle from yesterday :])

would you like to hear some Mike headcanons? (technically it's from an au, but. y'know)

i just need to ramble about my boy

yar sure :]

[that-darn-clown]

so. had an interesting thought about tghh!Cassidy and his autism. and by "interesting," i mean fucking hilarious.

so like. some context:

as i've mentioned before, Cass is semiverbal. the way this ends up manifesting for him is...similar to selective mutism, but different enough that it's clearly Not That. like, at his best, he's able to talk using short sentences and phrases without too much difficulty, but still stays pretty quiet most of the time. the different tiers of this are:

Most Comfortable (at home with family, or with the Emily's): see above. this is where you'd probably hear him talk the most, and with the least difficulty.

Out In Public/Surrounded By People (ex. Daycare, Pre-K, Freddy's, Fredbear's, school if he'd managed to live to that point): can still talk, but heavily prefers not to. responds with single word answers or short phrases, but speech sounds more forced or "odd." again, had he lived, he probably would've learned sign language and used it to communicate where possible.

Straight Up In Distress/Having A Meltdown (see Fnaf 4 minigames, or most of the time during the period between Andrew's Death and The Bite of '83): can hardly speak, but can make sounds. any speech he does make is usually extremely forced, and it sounds like he's effectively choking the words out. mostly communicates in one word answers/short phrases relating to whatever he's in distress over, or about getting it to stop (i'd say to see the only actual dialogue we get from him during Fnaf 4, where he's begging Mike to let him out of the Back Room in Fredbear's, and where he's begging Mike and his friends to not put him in Fredbear's mouth. that sort of thing)

he stims in a lot of ways! flapping his hands (especially with long sleeves...totally not projecting, not at all), rocking a bit while sitting down, bopping his head to music, chewing his thumb or sleeves (depending on if he's around family or loved ones who won't judge him, or if he's in public), doing the Pop Cat Thing (i do this myself. you probably know what i'm talking about), humming various lil tunes to himself, and i think he'd have a vocal stim of just saying things like "boop" to himself. or while booping the noses on his plushies. that kind of stuff.

horrific! sensory! issues!! doesn't like bright lights and loud sounds. there's several foods he doesn't like because the Texture Fucking Sucks. if his clothes aren't soft/they feel like sandpaper? won't wear them. he doesn't like the feeling of chalk on his fingers but still plays with it anyway because he finds it fun. it's a similar situation with dirt (basically he doesn't like the feeling of dry stuff sticking to his fingers...but he's got no problem with wet or even slimy stuff-)

special interests! plushies, sewing, stuff along those lines. also would've gotten into baking when he got older and i take no criticism on that. also would've gotten into a lot of morbid shit too had he lived. just reads these old mystery novels, short stories that are. really interesting for an Elementary School Student to be reading (think stuff like The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell and The Landlady by Roald Dahl), and is just very fascinated with how stuff like anatomy works. the kid also likes horror movies. so just let that all sink in.

carries around his plushies (or A plushie) as comfort items. if he went to school, i can see the teachers just letting him keep them with him because They Aren't Dealing With His Dad. Fuck No. (even in a timeline where no murders happen, William probably still scares people. he's not only Really protective over his kids and takes their side in almost everything, but he's also a REALLY tall guy. he also just has the constant wide-eyed, unhinged hare-esque look. it definitely doesn't help).

so, with all that out of the way. here's the funny thing i thought of:

in the good timeline, where everyone lived and Cassidy got to go to school, i like to think that eventually his teacher (and just. most of the staff, let's be real) started to suspect this kid had something up with him (specifically autism) and decided to have "That Discussion That Teachers Apparently Have With Parents When They Strongly Suspect Your Kid's Neurodivergent" with William.

so they pull Cassidy into the principal's office to have a meeting with him, William, and the teacher. they basically tell William "hey, we think your son's autistic. maybe get that checked out? either way, we're willing to help how we can." they then have to tell him "no, this isn't a bad thing and we aren't insulting your child. please sir calm down" because he thinks them calling Cassidy autistic was like. saying it was a Bad Thing (remember, this is. the 80s, unfortunately. so you can see why he'd be worried).

Cassidy, during all of this, is sitting there and doing his Pop Cat stim while he (impatiently) waits for this meeting to be over. the kid just wants to go back to lunch and eat his turkey and cheese sandwich in peace >:/ (< also has issues with his routines being interrupted. this kid hates Fire Drills for multiple obvious reasons)

then, in the middle of all of this, William drops a bombshell of:

"Well, why would his behavior be odd to me? I used to be like that when I was his age. I'm even still like that now, for God's sake."

so now Cassidy's 4th grade teacher and the principal have to deal with the "should we tell him/who's gonna tell him" moment of "Oh Dear Fuck, There's A Possibility That Mr. Afton, THE Mr. Afton, Is Autistic."

and then that unravels into the realizations of, in this order:

Oh Fuck, Michael And Elizabeth Are Probably ALSO Autistic. Which Explains A Lot

Wait...Michael And The Emily Twins Seemed To Act Kind Of Similar. Like, They Got Each Other In A Lot Of Ways That No One Else Seemed To. Oh Jesus-

Wait. (Remembers What Henry Himself Was Like During Parent-Teacher Conferences...And Meetings In General) OH FOR FUCK'S SAKE-

and that's how Cass's 4th grade teacher and the Elementary School Principal discovered that the entire Afton and Emily Families were autistic. This Explains A Lot. Including Freddy's And Fredbear's.

This means so much to me you have no idea

[that-darn-clown]

so, came up with another Fnaf Rewrite (not the main one) that was basically me going "time to make this shit Realistic" and mixing it with a Fnaf Analogue Horror au idea i have. calling it "Blurred Lenses." (because like. a very important plot thing is that Mike has dissociative amnesia. this guy has repressed and kinda forgotten a Lot of shit in his life).

you see, this is what happens when someone gets into IRL animatronics as well as Fnaf. you get this kinda stuff. because now i'm trying to think of how Fredbear's + Freddy's would've realistically been run. as well as how to make things MORE uncanny/terrifying-

so. important plot stuff before i get into a brief timeline:

Charlie's Murder + MCI happens in 1980. Mike, Charlie + Sammy, and David/Andrew are all ten years old, Elizabeth is five, and Cassidy is four.

the MCI kids are the same as canon...well, Gabriel is still Gabi (i can't unsee that kid as being transfem. i just can't), but aside from that, they're the canon kids that exist.

so...remember how i've mentioned that, when writing William, i make him emotionally abusive? specifically i make him pretty overprotective and possessive over his kids? because he can't be Normal for five seconds and doesn't want to lose his kids? okay, now imagine tghh!William and make him FIVE TIMES WORSE ON THAT FRONT. yeah he kinda Sucks in this au, be warned.

as mentioned earlier, Michael has dissociative amnesia. he struggles to remember a lot of stuff in the 1980-1985 range. even stuff in '87 is blurry to him.

Claire divorced William for similar reasons as in TGHH, but also because Sir Please Be Normal About Your Kids. Why Do You Think Claire Wanted To Take The Kids So Bad. She Wanted To At Least Try To Give Those Kids A Normal Life. (RIP Claire you tried your best

David/Andrew and Fritz (missing kid) were half/step brothers; same mom, different dads. Fritz's dad was...well, Fritz Smith Sr. they both lived with Dave's parents, though. but Fritz preferred staying with his own father. because his mom and stepdad SUCKED.

the ages of Charlie and the MCI kids: Charlie (10), Susie (6), Fritz Jr. (13), Gabriel/Gabi (7), Jeremy (7), David/Andrew (10)

now!! VERY QUICK TIMELINE THROUGH SISTER LOCATION:

1980:

Claire realizes that William is. not a great father, though he tries to be, and also because people are starting to find out that Liz is William's kid, but not one he had with Claire. and she's not sticking around to deal with the fallout of that. decides to divorce him and take the kids in the divorce. William, for some reason. gets it in his head that this is Henry's fault.

kills Charlie in a drunken rage.

does the MCI as a way to hurt Henry further; specifically by targeting his business.

David is murdered on June 23rd, and their murder is witnessed by Cassidy, who mistakenly believes O'Hare, and animatronic, caused the murder. William decides to Gaslight Gatekeep Girlboss his way out of this. it shockingly works. William dumps David's body in the lake near his house.

Mike has to report David's disappearance three days later on June 26th because Their Parents Literally Hadn't Seemed To Care That David Was Missing For Three Whole Days.

David possesses the Fredbear plush to watch over Cassidy and Michael.

Elizabeth accidentally gets springlocked in an unused clown rabbit/hare suit and becomes Shadow Bonnie (aka Distortion :))

1983:

Michael has definitely been taking the deaths of his friends and little sister well 👍 (< he's been bullying his traumatized brother)

Bite Happens. Cassidy survives.

Fallfest '83 Fire happens. Cassidy does Not survive.

Cassidy goes on to possess Fredbear with David. who is now More pissed at Afton than they were previously.

William is now even more paranoid of losing Michael. things will only get worse from here.

William Gaslight Gatekeep Girlboss's Michael. In Several Ways. (made Mike believe Cassidy died from the Bite, kinda started making Mike forget David, etc. he does somewhat fail on the latter point, though. Mike still has a few pictures of him and David, but David is wearing a Fredbear mask)

1984:

Freddy's shuts down after Sanitation Complaints.

residents urge for authorities to search the building again for the MCI victims.

1985:

building is finally checked after Henry also urges the authorities. the animatronics are finally searched, and the bodies of Susie, Fritz Jr., Gabi, and Jeremy are found. David is still "missing."

Claire's sister, Maya, discovers Mike's worsening mental health through a concerned call from Henry. she fights William for custody and wins. she attempts to placate William by stating that it's just to help improve Mike's mental health, and William is. still unhappy, but goes along with it.

the extent of Mike's dissociative amnesia is realized at this point, and Maya realizes that they've got a long way to go.

1987:

Fnaf 2 babyyy

'87 Massacre Happens

William somehow manages to convince Mike to come back and work at Freddy's. how he managed this? the power of ✨guilt tripping and manipulation,✨ mostly.

Jeremy and Mike the beloveds <3

Bite of '87....yaaaayyy...

William Accuses David's Dad (who worked at the location) Of Being The Killer. He Goes To Jail.

1988-1989:

Jeremy moves to Nebraska with Maya and Mike. boyfriends...

Fnaf 1 Location Opens 1989; William goes by the fake name "David 'Dave' Miller." guess who is Very not happy with his name choice.

Michael gets therapy :)

1993:

Ralph (PG) Dies And Becomes Shadow Freddy (Omen).

Mike comes back because he feels "called" back to Freddy's (a mix of Charlie, Cassidy, and David).

Horrible Family Reunion. Mike Doesn't Want To Really See His Dad Again, But Can't Help But Feel Happy To See Him. William? Ecstatic. And That's Not A Good Thing In This Scenario.

Mike leaves afterwards with the knowledge of his father's crimes. he and William get into a heated argument about it.

1994-1996:

Freddy's closes in '94.

in 1995, William destroys the animatronics and gets springlocked.

Mike, despite his complicated relationship with his father, is devastated by this.

in early 1996, Mike gets slightly drunk, takes an edible, and hangs out at Fredbear's for several hours. this is Sister Location.

the Funtimes are all either unused or prototype animatronics; Harriet (CB) was an unused clown-themed rabbit/hare, The Ventriloquist And Its Puppets (FT Freddy/Bonbon/Bonnet) were an old bear animatronic with two hand puppets, a prototype of Freddy and Bonnie in a way, there was The Fox Twins (FT Foxy/Lolbit), a magician and comedian duo, and a ballerina that Mike thinks might've been based on his mother Claire (Ballora). none of them ever speak, but Mike has conversations with them in his head, where he imagines responses from them. the only one actually talking to him is Harriet, and it's Distortion (Shadow Bonnie)/Liz talking through her.

Mike doesn't die, but when he sobers up the next afternoon, he just...comes out realizing that he still needs. So Much therapy.

and there's everything through Sister Location!!

another fun fact! the games in this au are much more. psychological horror based. like Mindfuckery type stuff.

EATING THIS!!!!!